Here's a nice long chapter for you. Chapter 79 hopefully up by the end of the week … not too much of a cliffhanger today! You can breathe easy.

CHAPTER 78

Jack and Shane were out in the middle of the field doing training exercises with their squads when a jeep came flying along the track. Jack had just finished handing out instructions as he turned to see who was in the vehicle and what they were after.

Private Allen's head emerged from the driver's window.

"Sergeant Thornton. Your wife has gone into labour."

A bunch of cheers went up as Jack reacted, shoving his papers into Shane's hands. Shane slapped him on the shoulder as he ran toward the vehicle amongst the chorus of well wishes and clapping that followed him. He jumped into the passenger seat and before the door had shut, Private Allen was spinning the jeep around and racing back toward base.

"How did you find out? Do you know anything else?" Jack grilled him, anxious at the fact that Elizabeth was no where close to her due date.

"No, just that someone called the office and your wife is on her way to the hospital."

Private Allen was concentrating on the dirt road in front of him and got them back to the base as quick as reasonably possible. Jack ran into the office building to confirm the message and sure enough, Abigail Stanton had made the call.

Jack ran to his locker, grabbed his keys, before bolting to his truck. Still in his army uniform, he drove toward the hospital before pulling Abigail's number up on his hands free. It began to ring and as soon as it was answered, Abigail's voice filled his car.

"Jack? Where are you?"

"I'm on my way. Is she okay?"

"Yes, it's happening fast though, Jack."

"I'm about ten minutes away. Where are the girls?"

"They're here at the hospital. I called an ambulance because I was worried Elizabeth wasn't going to make it to the hospital in time and we followed her here."

"Okay. I'll see you soon."

Jack hung up and frantically called Rosie who agreed to meet them at the hospital to look after the girls as well as call Charlotte on his behalf. Ten minutes later, Jack turned into the hospital carpark and after finding the first available spot, he threw his truck into park and jumped out, running to the entrance. His mind was going crazy, but most of all he felt like he had missed his three previous children's births and he didn't want to miss the last one.

Jack raced into the front entrance and ran toward the maternity section, thankful that they had squeezed in the hospital orientation weeks ago. As he neared the waiting area, he saw Abigail and his daughters waiting.

"Daddy!" Halley called out as he approached. Halley and Eve stood and raced toward him, clearly worried by the expressions on their faces. Grace sat beside Abigail, her arm still in the sling.

"Hi girls. It's okay. I have to go see how your Mom is. You be good for Abigail, won't you?"

Eve began to cry. "Daddy, don't leave" she said clutching his leg.

"It's okay. Rosie is on her way too. But we can't leave Mommy on her own, now can we?"

Halley shook her head and took Eve's hand. Abigail took her other, pulling her away from him.

"Go Jack. They'll be okay. It was just very sudden, that's all."

Jack nodded and pulled away, his heart breaking as Eve's sobs followed him toward the maternity suite doors. He rang the doorbell and a midwife appeared to let him in.

"I'm Jack Thornton, Elizabeth's husband."

"Right this way. She's been asking for you."

The midwife led him down a hallway and opened a door. "Look who I found" she said as she ushered Jack in.

Elizabeth was laying on the bed, her eyes closed and her face flushed. Jack rushed to her side, as her eyes opened, his hand finding hers and she grasped onto it.

"Jack!" Immediately tears appeared in her eyes. "I didn't think you were going to make it."

"Of course, I would. I promised didn't I."

The midwife beside her began to fill him in. "She received an epidural about ten minutes ago. We had a narrow window and just in case we need to head to surgery, we will be prepared. The heart rates of both babies are being monitored and they are both doing well at the moment. We have administered a steroid injection to help the babies breathing since they are almost seven weeks early."

Jack nodded, barely understanding what the nurse was talking about but knowing that they knew what the best course of action was.

"Here comes another contraction, Elizabeth. Can you feel any pain?" the midwife asked.

Elizabeth was breathing slowly. "A little, but it's bearable."

Another midwife walked into the room after a few more contractions had passed and checked Elizabeth over and spoke to the other nurse.

"You're close Elizabeth. The doctor is on his way. Everything is looking okay, just a little earlier than we anticipated but it won't be long now."

Elizabeth gave her a slight nod of the head, clearly feeling anxious about the situation. A contraction later, the doctor walked in with two other medical staff and checked everything again. After palpating her abdomen, he began to explain.

"Alright, Elizabeth. You're fully dilated. Things are moving very quickly. The first baby is in a good position. I'm not exactly sure what the other baby is up to – it will likely shift after the first baby is out of the way. We won't know until then if we will need to go straight to surgery. Theatres are ready for you in any case." The doctor turned to Jack. "If that happens, we will move quickly so don't panic." Addressing Elizabeth again, he told her to follow his instructions when to start pushing.

Elizabeth nodded, her hand tightening around Jack's.

"You're doing well, Beth. You can do it" Jack said quietly, as he brushed her hair off her face.

The doctor and midwife coached Elizabeth through the next several contractions before commencing to push. Within twenty minutes a piecing cry erupted into the room.

"It's a boy" the doctor announced as he handed the slippery baby to the midwife who held out a towel.

"A boy?" Elizabeth asked as her head fell back on the pillow, looking both exhausted and overwhelmed by everything.

Jack couldn't take his eyes away from the screaming bundle that was now being held by the midwife.

"Yes, Beth. A boy" Jack said as he leant over, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

The baby was immediately handed off to a nurse where he was placed in a crib to be checked over. When Jack looked back down at Elizabeth, tears had welled up in her eyes.

"A boy. I can't believe it. I was certain it was going to be two more girls."

Jack squeezed her hand tightly.

"Okay Elizabeth, baby two is in the right position but the heart rate is dropping quickly" the doctor said as he came around to her side, his hand resting on her shoulder. Jack could already tell it wasn't good news. "It looks like the cord is out of the way but I think it's best to move for a caesarian immediately" the doctor said. "We can have the baby out in minutes that way. Are you both in agreement?"

"Yes" Jack said quickly. "Do what you have to do."

The doctor looked down at Elizabeth who was nodding her head in agreement, tears still in her eyes.

After that it was a blur as Elizabeth's bed was wheeled out of the room and down to theatres at the end of the hall. Jack watched her go, feeling torn as he was leaving his newborn son behind. Another nurse came up behind him.

"Mr Thornton, come this way. You need to scrub in if you want to be with your wife."

"What about the other baby?" he asked looking back into the room.

"He will be okay. He's been placed in a humidicrib and they're checking his breathing, oxygen levels and heart rate. Come, your wife would want you to be with her."

Jack followed the nurse to an area next to the operating theatre and the nurse showed him what to put on before she helped him put a hair net, face mask and shoe covers on. She then led him to a door where she poked her head in first before ushering him inside.

"Mr Thornton. Come this way."

Jack was led toward the bed and only then did he see Elizabeth's small frame underneath all of the covers. Most of her was hidden behind a green gown and there was another green sheet hung up across her body so they couldn't see what was happening on the other side.

"Jack?" Elizabeth's eyes were frantic as she tried to find him.

"Hey baby. I'm here" he said as he reached her side, his hand finding hers.

"Where were you? I'm scared. I …"

"It's okay. This was the best option."

"I know. I just …" the tears began falling down her cheeks. "I can't feel anything. I don't know what's going on."

The doctor's voice perked up on the other side of the curtain. "Alright, Elizabeth, I've made the incision. I'm about to pull the baby out."

Jack leaned his head around the side of the curtain, while still holding Elizabeth's hand. He saw the incision in Elizabeth's belly and people assisting the doctor as he reached his hands inside and a moment later withdrew them with the small mass of a baby in his arms. The cord hung free from his navel but the baby remained quiet and immediately Jack began to panic.

"It's another boy, as expected" the doctor said, handing the baby to the nurse by his side who immediately whisked the baby over to a table to the side. Jack's eyes were glued to the baby, waiting for a sound but none came.

"Jack? Why isn't he crying?"

"I don't know. Let me go check."

Jack stood and moved closer to the table where two nurses were now hovering over the baby who was being held face down and Jack could now see a suction tube being removed from the baby's mouth and pressed to his nose. The other nurse was gently rubbing the baby's back but in a hurried motion.

"There we go" the second nurse said and she stopped rubbing and only then did Jack see the shudder of a breath. The baby was turned back over and placed on the table and Jack finally felt the panic in him settle as he watched the baby's chest rise up and down. The nurse checked his heart rate before turning to Jack.

"He's okay. Just a quiet one."

"Jack!" Elizabeth called out in a panic.

Jack rushed back to her, taking her hand. "He's fine, just not crying."

Elizabeth was now almost sobbing. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I could see him breathing and he's nice and pink."

Once the tears had started though, they weren't stopping. Elizabeth held an arm over her face, trying to hide them. Jack leant in and brushed his hand over her cheek, wiping them away.

"It's okay. They're both okay. You did amazing."

Elizabeth shuddered through her tears, her hands now wrapping around Jack's neck, her head buried against him.

"Beth, it's alright. I'm right here."

They stayed like that as everyone in the theatre moved around them. The doctor stitched up Elizabeth's wound, the theatre nurses did their checks, the anaesthetist looked at Elizabeth's vitals, and the neonatal nurses monitored the baby.

"Elizabeth, there's someone here you probably want to see" a voice said, interrupting them.

Jack pulled away and peered across to see the nurse holding up the baby from the crib.

"Here he is. He's breathing fine, but his oxygen level is still a little low. Crying normally clears out their airways but since he's been a little quiet we might need to try some more suctioning. We'll take him to the NICU now where we'll reunite him with his brother."

"Okay" she said, desperately wanting to hold him but understanding he couldn't be held just yet.

The nurse wheeled the crib away and then the doctor appeared behind them. "You did really well, Elizabeth. We will take you to recovery now until the anaesthetic has worn off and we will manage your pain medications before moving you to your room." Elizabeth nodded in agreement, too tired and overwhelmed for anything else.

"Mr Thornton, you can go to NICU with the babies or stay with your wife. It's your decision" the doctor added.

Jack turned back to Elizabeth knowing his decision but Elizabeth must have known. "Go with them, Jack. Make sure they're both okay?"

"Are you sure? I can stay with you" he said as he squeezed her hand.

"No. I want someone with them. Please?"

"Okay."

Jack leant down and gave her a kiss on the lips. "I love you. I'll see you soon."

The nurse was just disappearing out the door. Jack stood to follow but turned back to the doctor. "She'll be okay, right?"

"Yes. We just check for any excess bleeding and severe pain before she is moved to her room."

Jack nodded before following behind his newborn son toward the NICU. A nurse waited for him as he changed back into his clothes and led him toward the nursery, where he was shown to another sink to wash his hands again. Only after that did he notice that the nurses had wheeled the crib in beside another larger one that was already there.

"Mr Thornton? How about you take a seat here and we can place the baby on your chest. Skin-to-skin contact is beneficial for newborns."

"Okay. Do you want me to undo my shirt then?"

"Yes. We'll cover you over with a blanket, so you don't need to worry about modesty" the older nurse said with a smile.

Jack smiled back. "That was the least of my concerns right now."

"I'm Beverly."

"Please, call me Jack."

Jack took a seat in the recliner that Beverly indicated and leant back in the chair as he unbuttoned his shirt. The nurse picked up the baby who was covered in a few different leads to continue monitoring him, and after moving the blanket off the baby, she placed him directly on Jack's chest. Jack's arm wrapped around the fragile body, cradling him to his chest lightly before Beverly fixed up the leads and covered the baby with a light blanket.

"There we go. How's that?"

Jack could feel the small regular breaths of his son and could feel himself calming. Jack smiled down at him. "Good, but I feel like my other son is missing out."

Beverly smiled at him. "He'll get his turn. He's fast asleep right now."

Jack rested back, his focus on his son's breathing but his mind shifted to Elizabeth. He suddenly felt very emotional about everything and hoped that she was doing okay and hated the fact that she was on her own while he sat here with their two sons. The tears threatened as he felt like his entire family had been divided at this point.

An hour later, Beverly hovered in front of Jack.

"I will just take the baby back and recheck all of his vitals."

Jack nodded his agreement and as the blankets were taken away and the baby was removed from his father's chest, the sudden loss of warmth triggered the reaction they had all been waiting for. Within seconds a piercing cry erupted from the baby's mouth and Jack worried for a moment until seeing the smile on the nurses face.

"There we go" Beverly said. "That took you a little while" she said to the baby. She placed him in the crib and moved all of her instruments over him, checking his skin colour and oxygen levels. The baby's crying continued without any break and soon his brother was starting to show the signs of waking as well.

"That's looking much better. Well done, Dad!"

Jack smiled feeling proud that he had been of any use even though he still felt helpless. Beverly picked the baby back up again before returning him to the crib and covered him in a blanket to match his brother's so they now lay beside one another. The slightly older baby calmed back down and both now lay peacefully beside one another. Only then did Jack realise the similarity between them.

"Did they weigh the same in the end?"

"No. The second baby was about a pound less."

"Wow, that's quite a difference" Jack said as he stared at his boys but the difference in size mentioned was definitely believable as the younger baby was much smaller in every respect. "Do you know how much longer it will be before I can see Elizabeth?"

"It's usually about two to three hours."

"Okay. I had better go fill in my family. I forgot that they were waiting."

"That's fine. Do what you have to do. The babies may need a feed soon. We'll try and wait until your wife is ready but otherwise we can give them a bottle if needed."

Jack nodded and left the nursery with one last check of his baby boys. He emerged from the delivery suite to find Abigail, Rosie, Lee, Shane and Charlotte waiting with his daughters.

"Jack!" Rosie said, standing up upon noticing him. "How much longer?"

"All done" he said, finally feeling like he could smile.

"What?!" Rosie shrieked.

Jack walked over to his daughters who were waiting eagerly for him. Halley and Grace sat beside each other and Eve sat on Charlotte's lap beside them. Jack knelt down in front of them. "Guess what?"

"What?" Halley and Grace replied.

"You have two new baby brothers."

Their faces all lit up. "Two boys?!" Halley asked excitedly.

"Yep."

Halley jumped up, throwing her arms around her father's neck. "When can we see them?"

"Maybe tomorrow. They are in a special nursery at the moment because they were born so early. They need a little help breathing."

Halley nodded in understanding but he could see the confusion on Grace and Eve's faces.

"Congratulations Jack" Charlotte said, patting his shoulder. "Is Lizzy okay?"

Jack stood up then, his gaze moving away from his daughters.

"She's not great. The first baby was born quickly but they had to go to surgery because the second baby's heart rate dropped too quickly. She's still in recovery so …" he almost choked with the emotion again. He dearly wanted to see Elizabeth and hold her to know everything was okay.

"Hey, she will be okay" Charlotte said quietly, rubbing his arm gently.

"I know. She insisted that I go and check on the babies so I had to leave her."

"If that's what she wanted, you did the right thing. She is probably getting some good sleep so when she sees her boys, she will be more rested."

"I hope so."

"Twins, Jack! You two kept that quiet" she said with a broad smile.

"We did. Surprise" he said quietly. Charlotte just laughed.

Rosie approached then and wrapped her arms around him. "She'll be alright. She's one hell of a tough woman, that wife of yours."

"I know" Jack said with a smile.

Lee grabbed him in a hug too. "Congrats man! You've finally evened the playing field with all of those girls. And to think you and Beth kept twins a secret!"

"Yeah! Well done, man! You, Rip and the boys can take on the women of the house now!" Shane added as he shook Jack's hand.

"What are you even doing here?" Jack said in realisation. "We were in the middle of training exercises!" Jack said, laughing.

"I bolted out of there thirty minutes ago and came straight here. I wasn't missing this for the world."

Jack shook his head in good humour. He felt a tug on his pants and looked down to see Eve.

"Daddy, are you coming home with us now?"

"I can't, sweetie. I have to wait and check on your Mom when she wakes up."

Big tears rolled down Eve's cheeks and only then did Jack realise just how little she was and how overwhelming this whole the last few days had been for her as well. Jack scooped her up in his arms, holding her close.

"What's wrong, Eve?"

"I don't want to leave you."

"I know but it's just for tonight and then I will be home tomorrow night. Tomorrow you can come back for a visit to see Mommy and the babies."

"Who's taking us home?"

Jack wasn't sure what had been arranged, he just assumed Rosie had organised everyone. He looked over at Rosie and noticed she had been listening.

"Abigail has Elizabeth's car so she's going to drive the girls home and I'm going to do a food run and then look after them until Charlotte gets there."

"Thank you all so much. We couldn't have done this without you."

"Nonsense. We're family, Jack" Rosie said.

Jack turned to Abigail. "And thank you so much. I'm glad you were there to help."

"It's my pleasure, Jack" she said as she patted him on the back. "Luckily Elizabeth called me when she did."

Jack knelt down in front of Grace. "And how are you feeling? Is your arm sore?"

"I want Mommy" she said, beginning to cry.

"I know, sweetie. Is your arm sore?"

She nodded slowly. Still from his spot on the ground, Jack gave his mother the run-down on Grace's arm and her pain medication.

"She has probably had the sling around her neck for too long now. It gets too heavy for her. Once in the car, maybe prop it up and take the sling off."

"Will do, Jack" she said and he noticed Abigail had listened to all of his instructions as well.

"Don't worry. I remember my son Peter did almost the exact same thing when he was Grace's age" Abigail said reassuringly.

Jack said goodbye to each of his daughters and watched as Abigail took Halley and Grace's hands and Rosie carried Eve out of the hospital. Eve watched him over Rosie's shoulder and gave him a sad little wave just before she disappeared from view. Lee and Shane both said their goodbyes and offered their congratulations again before departing, leaving Jack alone with his mother.

"Jack, I don't want to impose but do you think it would be okay to see the babies before I go? Just a quick look."

"Of course. I'm sure that will be fine."

Jack led his mother back through the maternity doors towards the NICU. He washed his hands again and his mother copied him and as he led them into the suite, Beverly noticed him and smiled.

"They haven't moved, Jack. Still sleeping peacefully."

"That's good to hear. This is my mother Charlotte. She's just come in to have a quick look. I hope that's okay."

"Yes, of course. One visitor at a time is fine."

Jack led his mother over to the crib and he heard his mother suck in a breath.

"Oh Jack, they are beautiful."

"Yes, they are."

Charlotte and Jack both stood there staring at them for some minutes. "Which one is the older one?"

"The one on the right. You can tell he is a bit bigger. The one on the left is the one that had the breathing troubles before. He didn't cry when he was born and had us all in a bit of a panic."

Charlotte smiled down at them. "That would be beyond nerve wracking."

They stood there watching for a few more moments before Beverly reappeared beside them.

"Your wife has been released and has been moved to room 304. We will have to wait until she can sit in a wheelchair to come down here for a visit. Maybe you should take some photos or videos to show her in the meantime."

"That's a good idea." Jack took out his phone and took a few photos for Elizabeth. Once he was done, Jack hastily began to move toward the door.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Jack. I can bring the girls here when you're ready for them" Charlotte said as she followed him out.

"Great. Thanks Ma" he said quickly as he hurried out the door, impatient to see his wife.